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Chap5 Lecture1

The document discusses key concepts related to antennas: 1. Antennas are three-dimensional structures that convert between guided and free-space electromagnetic waves, acting as an interface between transmission lines and space. 2. Antennas have radiation patterns that describe the variation of electric fields and power as a function of direction. Key parameters of radiation patterns include beam area, directivity, and half-power beamwidth. 3. Antennas radiate power into space in a beam-like pattern. The solid angle subtended by the half-power points of the main lobe approximates the antenna's beam area.

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Kamran Razi
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44 views5 pages

Chap5 Lecture1

The document discusses key concepts related to antennas: 1. Antennas are three-dimensional structures that convert between guided and free-space electromagnetic waves, acting as an interface between transmission lines and space. 2. Antennas have radiation patterns that describe the variation of electric fields and power as a function of direction. Key parameters of radiation patterns include beam area, directivity, and half-power beamwidth. 3. Antennas radiate power into space in a beam-like pattern. The solid angle subtended by the half-power points of the main lobe approximates the antenna's beam area.

Uploaded by

Kamran Razi
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Antenna Theory and Fundamentals

Antennas are three-dimensional physical systems used in wireless communication systems.


An antenna is a transition device, or transducer, between a guided wave and a free-space wave,
or vice-versa. It is an interface between an electric circuit and space.
A radio antenna may be defined as the structure associated with the region of transition between
a guided wave and a free-space wave, or vice versa. Antennas convert electrons to photons, or vice
versa. The basic principle of every antenna is that radiation is produced by accelerated (or
decelerated) charges.
From the circuit point of view, the antennas appear to the transmission lines as a resistance Rrad,
called the radiation resistance. It is not related to any resistance in the antenna itself but is a
resistance coupled from space to the antenna terminals.
In the transmitting case, the radiated power is absorbed by objects like trees, buildings, the ground,
the sky and other antennas in far field region.
In the receiving case, passive radiation from distant objects or active radiation from other antennas
raises the apparent temperature of Rrad. For lossless antennas this temperature is related to the
temperature of distant objects that the antenna is “looking at”. In this sense, a receiving antenna
(and its associated receiver) may be regarded as a remote-sensing temperature-measuring device.

Figure 1: (a) Radio (or wireless) communication link with (a) transmitting (b) receiving antenna.

Figure 2: Schematic representation of region of space at temperature T linked via a virtual transmission line to an antenna.
BASIC ANTENNA PARAMETERS

Page | 1
Antenna Theory and Fundamentals

The various fundamental terms about antennas are


(i) Radiation Patterns
(ii) Beam area
(iii) Beam efficiency
(iv) Directivity and gain
(v) Physical and effective apertures
(vi) Effective height
(vii) Radiation resistance
(viii) Antenna impedance
(ix) Antenna duality
(x) Polarization
Radiation PATTERNS
The radiation patterns are three-dimensional quantities involving the variation of Electric field E
or Power as a function of the spherical coordinate’s θ and ϕ.
Fig. 3 shows a three-dimensional field pattern with pattern radius r (from origin to pattern
boundary at the dot) proportional to the field intensity in the direction θ and ϕ. The pattern has its
main lobe (maximum radiation) in the z direction (θ = 0) with minor lobes (side and back) in other
directions.
The main beam (or lobe) contains most of the radiation energy while as minor lobes contain less
energy. Between the lobes are nulls where the field goes to zero. The radiation in any direction is
specified by the angles θ and ϕ. In Fig. 3, the direction of the point P is at the angles θ = 30◦ and
ϕ = 85◦. This pattern is symmetrical in ϕ and a function of θ only.

Fig 3: Three-dimensional field pattern of a directional


antenna with maximum radiation in z-direction at θ = 0◦.

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Antenna Theory and Fundamentals

To completely specify the radiation pattern with respect to field intensity and polarization requires
three patterns:
(a) The θ component of the electric field as a function of the angles θ and ϕ or Eθ (θ, ϕ)
(V/m) as in Figs 3 and 4
(b) The ϕ component of the electric field as a function of the angles θ and ϕ or Eϕ(θ, ϕ)
(V/m).
(c) The phases of these fields as a function of the angles θ and ϕ or δθ (θ, ϕ) and δϕ(θ, ϕ)
(rad or deg).
Normalized (relative) field pattern: It is a dimensionless number with maximum value of unity.
A normalized field pattern is obtained by dividing the field component by its maximum value.
A normalized field pattern, as shown in Fig. 4a for the electric field is given by
E ( ,  )
Normalized field pattern  E ( ,  ) n   (Dimension less) (1)
E ( ,  ) max
The half-power level occurs at those angles θ and ϕ for which Eθ (θ, ϕ)n= 1/√2= 0.707.
Antenna Power Patterns: Patterns may also be expressed in terms of the power per unit area [or
Poynting vector S(θ, φ)]. Normalizing this power with respect to its maximum value yields a
normalized power pattern as a function of angle which is a dimensionless number with a maximum
value of unity. Thus, the normalized power pattern (as shown in Fig. 4b) is given by
S ( ,  )
Normalized power pattern  P ( ,  ) n  (Dimension less) (2)
S ( ,  ) max
E2 ( ,  )  E2 ( ,  )
Where S ( ,  )  W/m2
Z
S(θ, ϕ)max= maximum value of S(θ, ϕ),W/m2
Z0= intrinsic impedance of space = 376.7Ω
Figure 4(c) shows the plot of normalized electric field pattern on a logarithmic (decibel) scale in
rectangular coordinate system
Although the radiation pattern characteristics of an antenna involve three-dimensional vector fields
for a full representation, several simple single-valued scalar quantities can provide the information
required for many engineering applications. These are:
(i) Half-power beamwidth, HPBW
(ii) Beam area, ΩA
(iii) Beam efficiency, εM
(iv) Directivity D or Gain G
(v) Effective aperture Ae
These are now discussed below.

Half Power beamwidth (HPBW): The points on the field pattern where strength of the field falls
to 0.707 of the maximum value or power falls to half of maximum value are called half power
points on the antenna pattern. The width of main beam between the half power points is called half
power beamwidth (HPBW).

Page | 3
Antenna Theory and Fundamentals

Figure 4:(a)Normalized electric field pattern (b) Normalized power pattern


(c)A decibel (dB) plot of normalized electric field pattern

BEAM AREA (OR BEAM SOLID ANGLE) ΩA


In polar two-dimensional coordinates an incremental area dA on the surface of a sphere is the
product of the length rdθ in the θ direction (latitude) and r sinθdϕ in the ϕ direction (longitude), as
shown in Fig. 5.
Thus, dA = (r dθ)(r sin θ dϕ) = r 2dΩ (3)
Where dΩ = solid angle expressed in steradians (sr)
dΩ = solid angle subtended by the area dA
The area of the strip of width rdθ extending around the sphere at a constant angle θ is given by
(2πr sin θ)(rdθ). Integrating this for θ values from 0 to π yields the area of the sphere.
Thus, Area of sphere = 4πr 2 (4)
Where 4π = solid angle subtended by a sphere. Its units are steradian (sr)
Thus, 1 steradian = 1 sr = (solid angle of sphere)/(4π)
= 1 rad2 = (180/π)2(deg2) = 3282.8064 square degrees (5)
Therefore, 4π steradians = 3282.8064 × 4π = 41,252.96 Sqdeg
=41,253 square degrees = solid angle in a sphere (6)
The beam area or beam solid angle or ΩA of an antenna (Figure 5b) is given by the integral of the
normalized power pattern over a sphere (4π sr)
2 
A    P ( ,  )Sin  d d
 0  0
n (7)

Where dΩ= sin θ dθdφ, sr.

Page | 4
Antenna Theory and Fundamentals

The beam area ΩA is the solid angle through which all of the power radiated by the antenna would
stream if P(θ, ϕ) maintained its maximum value over ΩA and was zero elsewhere. Thus the power
radiated = P(θ, ϕ)ΩA watts.
The beam area of an antenna can often be described approximately in terms of the angles
subtended by the half-power points of the main lobe in the two principal planes.
Thus, Beam area = ΩA = θHP ϕHP (sr)
(8)
Where θHP and ϕHP are the half-power beam widths (HPBW) in the two principal planes, where
minor lobes are being neglected.

Figure 5: (a) Polar coordinates showing incremental solid angle dA= r 2dΩ on
the surface of a sphere of radius r where dΩ = solid angle subtended by the area
dA. (b) Antenna power pattern and its equivalent solid angle or beam area ΩA.

RADIATION INTENSITY
The power radiated from an antenna per unit solid angle is called the radiation intensity U (watts
per steradian or per square degree).
The normalized power pattern can also be expressed in terms of this parameter as the ratio of the
radiation intensity U(θ, ϕ), as a function of angle, to its maximum value. Thus,
U ( ,  ) S ( ,  )
Pn ( ,  )   (9)
U ( ,  ) max S ( ,  ) max
Whereas the Poynting vector S depends on the distance from the antenna (varying inversely as the
square of the distance), the radiation intensity U is independent of the distance,

Page | 5

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